Why go: This casual dining room and even more casual cafe/bakery are splashed in citrus colors. The Eastern European salads, buns, and dumplings will please finicky eaters, and it’s hard to resist the bakery case.
What to get: Carrot salad with garlic; creamy beet salad with walnuts; yeasty buns stuffed with meats, egg, fish, or vegetables; ground-beef patty topped with a sunny-side-up egg; manti, three large beef-filled dumplings; crispy napoleon cake with layers of buttercream.
Best for: Fresh takes on comfort food.
Insider tip: Though pastries are made throughout the day, staffers sometimes pop them into the microwave to warm them. Ask them not to—it affects the texture.
>> See all 2010 Cheap Eats restaurants here
Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
